United States · United States Congress · 13 August 1986
Expresses congressional support for awarding the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, on October 28, 1986, as a symbol of the Statue of Liberty Centennial Celebration.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1986
Honors the United Way on the occasion of its 100th anniversary. Encourages the United Way to continue its fine work and achieve its goal of doubling its resources by 1991.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1986
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require that limitations on Medicare payments for home health services be applied on an aggregate rather than a discipline-specific basis for home health agencies. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in establishing such limitations, to take into account: (1) recent cost data; and (2) changes in costs resulting from changes in billing and verification procedure requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1986
Anti-Cocaine Amendments Act of 1986 - Amends the Controlled Substances Act and the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act to impose criminal penalties for dealing in: (1) five grams or more of cocaine, its salts, optical and geometric isomers, and salts of isomers, or a substance chemically identical thereto; and (2) 100 or more grams of other schedule I or II narcotic drugs. (Current law imposes such increased penalties on a kilogram or more of some schedule I or II narcotic drugs.)
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 1986
Amends the Controlled Substances Act and the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act to impose increased criminal penalties for dealing in: (1) one or more grams of a base form of cocaine; and (2) 100 or more grams of other schedule I or II narcotic drugs. (Current law imposes such increased penalties on a kilogram or more of some schedule I or II narcotic drugs.) Includes cocaine in any base form as a schedule I substance. Imposes enhanced penalties for the manufacture of a controlled substance in or near an elementary or secondary school. (Current law imposes such enhanced penalties only for the distribution of a controlled substance in or near such schools.) Provides increased penalties (up to life imprisonment) for certain violations of the Controlled Substances Act which result in a person's death.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 1986
Federal Credit Management and Debt Collection Improvements Act of 1986 - Establishes in the Department of the Treasury an Under Secretary of the Treasury for Debt Collection and Credit Management, who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the consent of the Senate. Sets forth the functions of the Under Secretary with respect to establishing and implementing a comprehensive Federal debt collection and credit management plan. Directs the Comptroller General to report to the Congress an analysis of such plan, together with comments. Requires executive agency proposals for new credit programs to contain an explicit statement of any subsidies involved. Requires interest rates in new direct loan programs to be related to market rates for comparable private sector loan programs. Requires the assessment of loan origination and application fees to defray administrative costs and costs of defaulted loans. Prohibits loans to persons who are delinquent in debt payments to the United States. Sets forth the circumstances under which a person who has defaulted on a prior loan may be allowed another loan. Requires loan contracts to contain default and acceleration clauses. Requires each loan applicant to be provided with a written notice specifying Federal debt collection policies and practices. Directs the President to provide for a study of private sector alternatives to Federal loan programs. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to establish Federal credit management policies and promulgate regulations to implement this Act. Requires each executive agency to report to the Congress, within one year of enactment of this Act, on its delinquency and default standards. Directs the Comptroller General, within two years of enactment of this Act, to audit agency credit programs. Requires agencies to conform to regulations under this Act and the Federal Claims Collection Act of 1966 (as amended by the Debt Collection Act of 1982) within one year of enactment of this Act. Establishes a collection target amount of $15 billion during the period beginning October 1, 1986, and ending September 30, 1989. Increases an agency's funding when it exceeds its debt collection target, and decreases such funding for not meeting its target. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to promulgate regulations to assist agencies in developing proposals for debt collection targets. Requires the use of credit bureaus and private collection agencies to recover indebtedness owed the Federal Government. Provides for routine adjustments of Federal pay for non-controversial overpayments. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to authorize agencies to use Internal Revenue Service information in debt collection. Requires the inclusion of debt collection data in the budget process. Directs each agency head to investigate the feasibility and cost effectiveness of selling debts to the private sector. Makes State laws inapplicable with respect to time limitations for bringing legal actions on debts owed to the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 1986
Designates August 1, 1986, the 11th anniversary of the signing of the Helsinki Accords, as Helsinki Human Rights Day. Requests the President to: (1) reassert American commitment to the Helsinki Accords; (2) raise the issue of noncompliance with such Accords with the U.S.S.R. and the Warsaw Pact nations; and (3) convey to U.S. allies the necessity of unity on these points.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1986
Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act of 1986 - Amends the Toxic Substances Control Act to direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to promulgate regulations for asbestos hazard abatement in the schools. Requires each local educational agency to develop an asbestos management plan which provides for inspections, removal, reinspections, and the use of accredited consultants involved in developing the plan or in the response actions concerning friable asbestos-containing material. Requires warning labels on any friable asbestos-containing material and asbestos-containing material still in routine maintenance areas of a school building. Requires local educational agencies to respond to asbestos according to EPA's most current guidance document, if the Administrator fails to promulgate regulations within the prescribed period. Requires such agencies to develop and implement operation and maintenance and management plans for friable asbestos-containing material in school buildings, including inspections and State approval. Sets forth standards for ambient interior concentrations of asbestos after completion of response actions under the current guidance document. Requires that the public be informed and protected during the phases of the management plan, including transportation and disposal. Requires each State Governor to establish administrative procedures for reviewing school asbestos management plans to be carried forward by the local educational agency. Directs the Administrator to develop a model accreditation plan for States to give accreditation to individuals who inspect, manage, and respond to friable asbestos problems in schools. Requires EPA training courses or trained personnel to meet such standards. Makes the use of accredited personnel a condition for receiving financial assistance under the Asbestos School Hazard Abatement Act of 1984. Makes any local educational agency which fails to comply with this Act liable for civil penalties, including injunctive action. Requires the Administrator or appropriate Governor to investigate citizen complaints. Permits citizen suits to compel the Administrator to meet deadlines for promulgating regulations. Authorizes the Administrator or the appropriate State Governor to take necessary response measures where the presence of airborne asbestos or the condition of friable asbestos-containing material in a school building may be hazardous and adequate local measures have not been taken. Sets forth notification requirements and cost recovery entitlements when such actions are taken. Provides that State law is not preempted from imposing additional liability or more stringent requirements with respect to asbestos in schools. Limits the liability of asbestos contractors or local educational agencies performing activities under this Act to damages caused by negligent actions or intentional misconduct. Prohibits discrimination by a State or local educational agency against a whistle-blower. Directs the Administrator to appoint an Asbestos Ombudsman to answer complaints and inquiries concerning aspects of this Act. Requires the Administrator to study and report to the Congress within one year on the need for a similar program for public and commercial buildings. Establishes the Asbestos Trust Fund in the Treasury to carry out the Asbestos Hazards Abatement Assistance Program. States that such Fund shall consist of amounts repayed under loans under the Asbestos School Hazard Abatement Act of 1984. Directs the Administrator to make grants to States during FY 1988 for grants to local educational agencies to inspect for asbestos in school buildings and develop management plans.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 1986
Social Security Administrative and Investment Reform Act of 1986 - Title I: Establishment of the Social Security Administration - Amends title VII (Administration) of the Social Security Act to establish as an independent executive agency a Social Security Administration, headed by a Social Security Board. Provides that it shall be the duty of the Administration to administer the programs established by titles II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) and XVI (Supplemental Security Income) of the Social Security Act. Requires the Board to study and make recommendations as to the most effective methods of providing economic security through social insurance and as to legislation and matters of administrative policy. Establishes in the Administration: (1) a Commissioner of Social Security; (2) a Deputy Commissioner of Social Security; (3) a General Counsel; (4) an Inspector General; and (5) an Office of the Beneficiary Ombudsman, to be headed by a Beneficiary Ombudsman who shall represent the interests of beneficiaries under the Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance program and the Supplemental Security Income Program within the Administration. Requires the annual report of the Board to include a description of the activities of the Beneficiary Ombudsman. Requires the Board to make annual budgetary recommendations relating to the Administration. Requires that appropriations requests by the Administration for staffing and personnel be based upon a comprehensive workforce plan as established by the Board. Provides for the apportionment of administrative costs. Requires the annual report of the Board to include a section reflecting the use of budget authority provided to the Administration. Requires that authority for automated data processing procurement and facilities construction be provided in the form of contract authority covering the total cost of such acquisitions. Makes amounts needed for the liquidation of contract authority so provided available from the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund to the extent that such amounts are not needed to meet current obligations for benefit payments. Requires the Board and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management to implement demonstration projects relating to personnel matters. Directs the Board and the Administrator of General Services to implement such projects relating to delegations from the Administrator. Specifies the authorities which are to be delegated to the Board from the Administrator and the Director. Requires the Comptroller General to report to specified congressional committees concerning such projects, including an evaluation of the Board's readiness to assume full and permanent authority. Requires the Board to cause a seal of office to be made and judicial notice taken thereof. Provides for the transfer to the Administration of all functions carried out by the Secretary of Health and Human Services with respect to the programs and activities to be carried out by the Administration under this Act. Abolishes the position of Commissioner of Social Security in the Department of Health and Human Services. Sets forth effective date and transitional rule provisions. Title II: Conforming Amendments and Rules of Construction - Requires the Secretary and the Board to report to the Congress within 120 days after the beginning of each regular session on their administration under this Act. Requires the Secretary to study and make recommendations on the most effective methods of providing economic security and on the administrative policy for the programs. Directs the Board to appoint, quadrennially, an Advisory Council on the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Program and an Advisory Council on Health and Supplementary Medical Insurance to review the relation of the trust funds supporting the OASDI program and the Medicare program and the long-term commitments of those programs. Requires each council to submit a report to the Board for transmittal to the Congress and the Board of Trustees of each Trust Fund. Title III: Management of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund - Amends the OASDI program to direct the Managing Trustee of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund (OASDI trust funds) to immediately invest that portion of the OASDI trust funds which is not required for current withdrawals. Requires the investment to be made in accordance with policies established by the Social Security Board. Prohibits the sale and redemption of OASDI trust fund assets or the expenditure of OASDI trust fund amounts for purposes other than those specified in title II of the Act. Requires members of such trust funds' Board of Trustees to faithfully execute their duties, but does not impose a fiduciary duty. Requires that, in consideration of the public debt limit, required investment of trust fund amounts occur prior to the issuance of other obligations. Directs that tax receipts earmarked for the OASDI program be immediately transferred (currently, monthly transfers are made) from the general fund of the Treasury to the OASDI trust funds. Requires the Board of Trustees of the OASDI trust funds to meet at least twice each year. Sets forth provisions requiring reports by the Board of Trustees and the Managing Trustees to the Congress regarding the operation and status of the OASDI trust funds. Title IV: Additional Matters - Amends the OASDI program to prohibit the payment of OASDI benefits to individuals who have been deported pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act because of activities conducted under the direction of or in association with the Nazi government of Germany or its allies. Requires individuals to be paid interim benefits in cases where an administrative law judge has determined their entitlement to certain OASDI or SSI (Supplementary Security Income) benefits, but the Secretary's final decision has not been issued within 90 days of the judge's decision. Excludes any representative of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Social Security Administration, any other agency of such department, or an involved State agency from appearing as a party at an OASDI or SSI benefit hearing or participating in the development of the record of such hearing, unless, in the latter case, the presiding officer requests such participation.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1986
Amends the National Housing Act to extend authority through FY 1987 for: (1) title I financial institution insurance for housing renovation and modernization; (2) general mortgage insurance; (3) low and moderate income and displaced families mortgage insurance; (4) homeownership for lower income families including mortgage insurance authority and housing stimulus authority; (5) mortgage co-insurance, including rental rehabilitation and development projects; (6) graduated payment and indexed mortgage insurance; (7) the demonstration mortgage reinsurance program; (8) mortgage insurance for armed forces' civilian employees and defense housing for impacted areas; (9) mortgage insurance for land development; and (10) mortgage insurance for medical and dental group practice facilities. Sets forth specified limits on FY 1986 and 1987 insured housing loans and on FY 1987 guaranteed mortgage-backed securities. Amends the Housing Act of 1964 to extend urban rehabilitation loan authority through FY 1987. Amends the Housing Act of 1949 to extend Farmers Home Administration authority through FY 1987 for: (1) insured loans for rental and cooperative housing and related facilities for elderly persons and families in rural areas; (2) rural communities with 10,000 to 20,000 population to participate in rural housing programs; and (3) mutual and self-help housing grant and loan authority. Amends the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to extend authority for national flood insurance, including emergency implementation and flood-risk zones through FY 1987. Amends the National Housing Act to extend authorities for the national crime insurance program and existing contracts through FY 1987. Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to extend community development block grant entitlement authority for certain metropolitan city and urban county areas through FY 1987. Amends the Housing and Urban-Rural Recovery Act of 1983 to extend for 30 days the maximum interest rate limitation on loans for housing and related facilities for elderly or handicapped families through FY 1987. Extends the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act through FY 1987.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 1986
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the threshold for itemized deductions for medical and dental expenses for Federal income tax purposes should not be greater than five percent of adjusted gross income.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1986
Requires the Securities and Exchange Commission to examine and report to the Congress on: (1) the operations of professional financial planners; (2) the nature, extent, and adequacy of Federal and State regulation of financial planning activities; (3) recommendations for correcting inadequate regulation through legislative proposals or the use of a self-regulatory organization; (4) the risks faced by investors because of inadequate regulation; and (5) the risks faced by regulated persons as a consequence of their relationships with financial planners. Directs the Commission to consult with State regulatory officers and agencies and with professional organizations which provide financial planning services.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1986
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Director of the National Institutes of Health should transfer the Silver Spring Monkeys to the Primarily Primates, Inc., animal sanctuary in San Antonio, Texas.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1986
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that unless the Health Care Financing Administration allocates sufficient funds and and takes other action to ensure prompt payment of Medicare claims, the House of Representatives shall adopt legislation ensuring prompt claims payment.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 1986
Micro-Enterprise Promotion Act of 1986 - Amends the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 to provide for a program to use the foreign currency proceeds of U.S. agricultural commodity sales abroad to provide loans through financial intermediaries to micro-enterprises owned by the poor in developing countries. Defines "micro-enterprise" as a small enterprise operating within the informal sector economy of a developing country which lacks access to foreign credit sources. States that for FY 1987 through 1990 foreign currencies shall be made available for such program in an aggregate amount of between 20 percent and 30 percent of the value of all such foreign currency commodity sales.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 1986
Low Income Elderly and Disabled Medicaid Amendments of 1986 - Title I: Optional Coverage of Elderly and Disabled Poor for All Medicaid Benefits - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to give States the option of extending Medicaid coverage to elderly and disabled individuals whose income is too high for them to qualify for Medicaid under current income tests, but does not exceed a State maximum income level to be established at or below the Federal poverty level. Requires States providing coverage under this Act to provide Medicaid coverage, pursuant to the Medicaid Infant Mortality Amendments of 1986, to pregnant women and infants whose income does not exceed the State maximum income level. Title II: Optional Coverage of Poor Medicare Beneficiaries for Medicare Cost-Sharing Expenses - Authorizes the States to provide Medicaid coverage for Medicare (title XVIII of the Act) premiums, deductibles, and coinsurance payments for which Medicare-eligible individuals whose income does not exceed the State maximum income level would otherwise be accountable.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 1986
Designates the school year of September 1986 through May 1987 as National Year of the Teacher and January 28, 1987, as National Teacher Appreciation Day.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 1986
Amends Federal law regarding toll collection for motor vehicles on any bridge connecting the borough of Brooklyn, New York, and Staten Island, New York, to repeal the requirement that tolls be collected only from those vehicles exiting from such bridge in Staten Island.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 1986
Food Irradiation Safety and Labeling Requirement Act of 1986 - Prohibits the Secretary of Agriculture from implementing pork irradiation regulations and the Secretary of Health and Human Services from implementing other food irradiation regulations. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to arrange for and report within two years on a study of the risks to human health and the environment presented by food irradiation. Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require that food for domestic use or export which has been irradiated be labeled in a prescribed fashion. Requires restaurant menus to indicate when foods have been irradiated. Requires persons irradiating food to report semiannually to the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 1986
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President and the Secretary of State should insist at the Vienna Review Meeting of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, and in discussions with Communist Party and Soviet leaders, that imprisoned and exiled members of the Ukrainian and other Helsinki Monitoring Groups be released and allowed to emigrate to the countries of their choice. Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the Secretary of State should ensure that the U.S. consulate in Kiev reports on Soviet human rights violations in the Ukraine; and (2) such information should be included in reports on compliance with the Helsinki Final Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 1986
Urges that the list of foreign born Americans to be honored at the Statue of Liberty Centennial celebration be expanded so as to guarantee representation by all ethnic American organizations which have made significant contributions to our Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1986
Declares that the House of Representatives urges: (1) the Soviet Union to share with the international scientific community information about the Chernobyl accident and to open the nuclear site for international inspection; (2) the establishment of an international emergency alert system; (3) the International Atomic Energy Agency to establish safety standards for nuclear power plants; and (4) the United States and other member nations of the Agency to implement standards by directing the Agency to establish an international emergency response force. Encourages the formation of an international commission to examine the causes of the Chernobyl accident.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 1986
Ballistic Knife Prohibition Act of 1986 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit the possession, manufacture, sale, importation, and mailing of ballistic knives (knives with a detachable blade that is propelled by a spring-operated mechanism).
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 1986
Manufacture and Public Distribution of Certain Copyrighted Material Act - Amends the copyright law to extend indefinitely the manufacturing clause, which prohibits the importation of certain English language books not manufactured in the United States or Canada. Eliminates the Canadian exemption, per se, after 1988. Permits exemptions from such restriction if a foreign country, including Canada, is certified by the United States Trade Representative as providing adequate copyright protection for U.S. nationals and such country freely trades in printed matter with the United States or adheres to a bilateral or multilateral agreement with the United States and supports internationally recognized workers' rights.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 1986
States that the Congress: (1) commends the courage of the West Berliners in making that part of the city a showcase of Western values; and (2) condemns the existence of the Berlin Wall. Declares that the Congress reaffirms the U.S. commitment to Berlin and its people.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 1986
Reaffirms the U.S. commitment to Berlin and commends that city for its commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Jesse Owens' victories at the 1936 Olympics. Honors Jesse Owens' accomplishments as the triumph of equality and justice over racism and bigotry.